The rising cost of electricity has made users of electric power increasingly sensitive to inefficiencies and waste in its use. As homeowners seek to reduce their utility bills by tracking down and removing sources of waste, electric companies have been receiving many inquiries from consumers questioning the accuracy of electrical watt-hour meters that are employed to record the consumption of electricity at the operational site. The users of electricity, understandably, do not want to be overcharged, and the utilities are even more anxious not to have their good will damaged by allegations of overcharging. It is, therefore, desirable that a complaint about improper meter operation be promptly investigated and that any inaccuracies discovered be promptly remedied.
Typically, electric power meter testing and calibration is performed at specially designed and equipped laboratories staffed by electric company employees trained to operate highly sophisticated and complex equipment. A consumer's request for a determination of the accuracy of his watt-hour meter usually requires that the meter be removed from the premises (and be temporarily replaced with another) so it may be brought to the testing laboratory. Once there, the suspect meter and a standard meter are simultaneously subjected to the same energizing and loading circuitry and a comparison of the results is made. If the meter being tested proves to be operationally accurate, a great deal of time and effort has been expended that could have been more efficiently utilized elsewhere. Hence, it is more desirable to be able to quickly, easily and accurately test the meter at its site of use.
The prior art discloses several devices for spot-testing the meter at the operational site or premises as typified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,218,650 to W. J. Larson and 2,249,075 to D. A. Young et al. These devices generally comprise a base member for interposition between an electric meter and its supporting pan and include outlet conductors, in the form of cables or test points, for connection to suitable external measuring instruments. The use of external instruments therewith necessitates that expensive equipment be brought into the field and connected for use at the test site. This presents an increased chance of damage to such equipment as a result of adverse environmental conditions or incorrectly performed connections between the equipment and the testing device. In addition, special technical training of those who are to perform the in-field testing is required to acquaint such persons with the operation of the external measuring instruments and with the particular tests to be performed in order to quickly determine whether the tested watt-hour meter is accurately performing its task.